


Savior No More

by Kayim



Category: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-15
Updated: 2010-12-15
Packaged: 2017-10-13 16:33:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/139364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kayim/pseuds/Kayim
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John made it to 2027 with the help of Weaver.  Now he's there, he's no longer sure what he's supposed to do anymore.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Savior No More

**Author's Note:**

  * For [little_giddy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/little_giddy/gifts).



**3rd March 2027**

"My mom used to make recordings like this. She said that although she was recording them for me, it was also cheaper and more effective than therapy sessions. I don't have anyone who would want to listen to me ramble, so I figured that it might work as therapy for me too.

I've been here for almost two weeks now, and I'm still no closer to tracking down Cameron or finding out how to get back home. I have to admit though, part of me likes it here.

I'm no longer John Connor, savior of humanity, leader of the resistance, hope for all mankind. Here, I'm just John Connor, orphan, loner and, occasionally, tech geek. It's a relief, not having to hide who I am all the time, or pretend to make friends when I know they'll probably be dead in less than ten years. Here, I'm just another survivor, waiting for someone else to do the hard work.

I guess I should have known who that someone else would be. I've met Kyle Reese a few times now, but I still find it difficult remembering that in another life, this is my father. He's younger than me, believe it or not, and compared to Derek, he seems very naïve, less jaded than I thought he would be. I wonder if this is how I would have appeared to other people.

He's not my father though, not this Kyle anyway. I spent a while thinking about this, but if I'm not the leader here, I can't send him back in time to save my mom. And if I don't do that, I'll never be born. Good job all that happened in a different timeline, I guess, otherwise I'd cease to exist.

I hate time travel.

The future is different to how I imagined it would be. Derek told me a fair bit about what it was like where he came from, but he never described the dirt. It's everywhere, clinging to every piece of skin, embedding itself deep into my pores. I doubt I'll ever feel clean again. And the air constantly feels stale. Every time I breathe in, I can smell it. It made me want to throw up at first. I guess I'm getting used to it. That's a pretty disgusting thought.

I haven't outside yet. I know it must be really bad out there, but can't help wishing I could come up for air. Just a single breath of fresh air. Weird how we take things like that for granted.

I've not seen Weaver, either, since the day we got here, but knowing now what she is, she could well be here and I just wouldn't recognize her. I can't help thinking about what she said, about how she was one of the machines that was fighting alongside the humans. I don't remember hearing about that in any of the stories mom or Derek told me, but a few people have said things that make me believe it might be true. With the machines on our side, there might be a fighting chance for the humans. Things are a lot different now than they ever were before.

How much of this future is different because I wasn't in the past? The more important question should probably be, how much is better because I wasn't there. My mom always told me I was destined to save humanity, but it seems to be doing pretty well without me…"

 

 **15th March 2027**

"I didn't mention Allison last time, did I? She looks so much like Cameron that it hurts to see her, but as soon as she speaks, it's obvious that they're nothing alike. While Cameron almost never smiled, Allison never seems to stop. Despite this world that we're in, despite the death and pain and misery that surround us, she's happy.

I feel like I should warn someone about what Skynet intends to do. I want to warn Allison that she might be at risk, that its going to try to capture her. Maybe it won't. What would I say anyway? "Be careful, Skynet wants to create a Terminator that looks like you so it can infiltrate the resistance." Yeah, right. All I can do is keep an eye on her.

Her closeness to Kyle bothers me. I know it shouldn't – that I have no claim on her in this world – but I can't help it. I still see her as Cameron, and as Cameron, she's my friend, not his.

Even Allison should have been mine. My confidant, I mean. Cameron told me about Allison, about how she was chosen by Skynet because she was so close to me. And now she's with Kyle.

My god, that sounds so childish. But Kyle has taken everything else of mine in this godforsaken world that I just wanted to keep her for myself.

Okay, maybe it's time for me to put this journal away for a while. I really don't like where I'm going with this."

 

 **26th March 2027**

"I think I know how to find Cameron.

I met a young woman today, pretty, strawberry blond hair, in her 20s. She doesn't know me, but I recognized her immediately. Savannah Weaver looks so much like her mother that I expected her to talk with the same accent, but she doesn't. I guess she grew up without the influence of that machine after we left.

I wanted to talk to her, ask her about my mom, about Ellison, about everything, but I couldn't get near her. I asked Allison about her and she said she was a special envoy, but wouldn't say anything else. She looked at me strangely when I asked, as if she knew something I didn't. Cameron used to give me the same look sometimes.

I've got my own theory though. I think she's here as a go-between, and I think Weaver sent her. That was always her plan, wasn't it – she wanted to work with the human resistance to bring down Skynet. What if she's using her own daughter to forge an alliance? After all, a machine wouldn't be able to get in here, but Savannah is completely human.

And if Weaver is still here, then she's with John Henry. And if John Henry is here, Cameron's with him.

I wish I could get close enough to talk to her, but there's no way Kyle is letting me anywhere near her. I suppose he doesn't know me from Adam, but I've been here long enough to prove myself. He's just so damn stubborn. I guess I can see why mom fell for him. They're far too much alike."

 

 **2nd April 2027**

"Savannah is nothing like I expected.

The last time I met her was when she was what? Six or Seven years old? She had that wide-eyed innocence that all children have, at least all children pre-Judgment Day, and she looked at everything as a game.

Now she is so serious, so determined and dedicated to her cause. Believe it or not, she reminds me a little of Cameron. She has a form of tunnel vision, her eyes firmly locked on the future that she is trying to build, never once wavering or faltering.

I finally got to speak to her, just for a short while, but it was a start. I offered to work on upgrading the security grid in the visitor area, and Derek agreed. The area isn't used very often, mainly because it's cold and a little damp, and no one particularly wants to work in there, so they were happy enough for me to volunteer.

There were guards all around her room, outside the door to give her the illusion of privacy, but the walls were thin enough that every cough could be heard. She wouldn't have gotten very far if she'd tried to run. But I don’t think she wanted to do that.

She was sitting on the floor when I went in to check on the monitor in her room. She didn't even raise her eyes to look at me. I tried to make small talk, but she ignored me, so I tried the only thing that I thought might get a reaction.

I told her that the answer was no.

She finally looked at me and asked if I was John Connor. I nodded and she smiled at me. "Good," was all she said. I have no idea what that means, but that was the only other thing she said to me while I was there. What does it mean? I have no idea, but I suspect it meant something."

 

 **8th April 2027**

"I keep thinking about what Savannah said. Good. Good that I'm still alive in this timeline? Good that I found her? Good that I knew the secret code phrase? I don't know.

I need to talk to Kyle. Get him to trust her, to make the alliance. Without Weaver and her machines, none of us stand any chance of making it through this war alive. Will he believe me? Will he believe her? Is he so distrustful of the machines that he won't even listen?

Allison.

She's the one Kyle will listen to. And I think she'll listen to me. I hope she will."

 

 **9th April 2027**

"I couldn't tell her everything – even with the fact that everyone here seems to know that time travel is possible, my story would still sound a little farfetched – but I told her that I thought Savannah was telling the truth.

She didn't ask me how I knew, or what truth I was referring to. She just looked at me, her head tilted slightly to the side, the same way Cameron did when she was trying to figure out something I'd said. I thought I'd blown it when she didn't speak, but then she smiled at me, kissed me on the cheek, and said she'd speak to Kyle.

When she kissed me I finally realized that she's nothing like Cameron. Cameron's lips were always cold to the touch.

I don't know what the hell is happening here."

 

 **15th April 2027**

"Being summoned by Kyle Reese is like being called to the headmaster's office in school. Except in most schools, the office isn't surrounded with armed guards.

He was sat behind a desk, like some damn president or something, with Derek and Allison standing next to him, one on each side.

He asked me how much I knew about Savannah's reason for being here. I told him I knew enough to know that he should accept her offer. The three of them looked at each other and I knew that they had already made up their minds about her. I just didn't know which way their minds had been made.

I knew I had to try to get them to listen.

I told them that not all the machines were out to destroy us. I said that Savannah's group were fighting on the same side as us already. That they wanted Skynet destroyed. I may have gotten a little over-enthusiastic, but I couldn't help it. As soon as the idea had entered my head, I knew that what I was saying was true. Savannah, Weaver, John Henry, even Cameron. They were here to help the resistance. They were here to save humanity.

Eventually I finished my little rant. Derek looked at me as though I was insane. I knew he'd be the hardest to convince. Allison had that almost-smile on her face. And Kyle? He just stared at me, like he was trying to read my mind or something.

It was Kyle who finally spoke. He just thanked me for my time and said I could leave. That was it. I had spent my entire life working towards this moment, and he dismissed me without a word.

That was two days ago. I haven't seen any of them since. And Savannah has left the compound. I have no idea what's happening anymore."

 

 **19th April 2027**

"I think the decision has been made. I think Kyle's accepted the offer. It's April 19th, the anniversary of the day Skynet went online. It feels right.

And I had a dream last night. It was the first time I'd had one of those kind of dreams in months. I was still here, in the future, but everything was different. Terminators were walking around the corridors, having conversations with humans. One of them was even petting one of the dogs. I saw Weaver sitting at a desk with Kyle, heads bent as they poured over blueprints. I still didn't see Cameron, but Allison was there, as was Derek. They were all alive.

I don't think any of that can happen if the offer isn't accepted. And I don't think it was just a dream.

In my heart, in my head, I know the truth. That was the future I saw. Somehow, someday, we'll win the war. Humans and machines working together.

I'm not the savior of the human race anymore. The human race is now its own savior."


End file.
